


Twelve Hours

by Mireille



Category: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2006-11-23
Updated: 2006-11-23
Packaged: 2019-03-12 22:53:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,364
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13557309
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mireille/pseuds/Mireille
Summary: Twelve hours is a long time to worry.





	Twelve Hours

** 0\. 9:00 P.M. **

_Let yourself in_ , he'd said. _I shouldn't be too late_. 

But that had been three hours ago, and she's been here for two, grading the quizzes she'd had the forethought to bring along and wishing there was something resembling a Diet Coke anywhere in this apartment and _not_ fuming as she looks at the clock, because she understands that some things will always take priority with him. 

She _does_ worry, though, watching the minute hand sweep around again, because she also understands the _kind_ of things that take priority with him. 

These days, she understands better than she wants to.

***

**  
1\. 10:00 P.M.   
**

The door opens, but it isn't Rupert--at least, not _just_ him: Willow's holding the door open; he's leaning heavily on; and Buffy follows, still brandishing a stake. 

They're too busy to be surprised to see her here. Xander helps Rupert to the couch; Willow goes to the kitchen for an ice pack; Buffy gives a brief explanation before going to the window, watching the darkness to see if they've been followed.

They've all done this before, Jenny realizes, so many times that it's habit for them. 

Not for the first time, she wonders what kind of life this is.

***

**  
2\. 11:00 P.M.   
**

The children have gone, with a mixture of gratitude that none of them has to invent an excuse to stay here and keep an eye on Rupert, and embarrassment as they realize that she'd already planned to be here all night, regardless. 

Rupert is installed on the couch with an ice pack, a mug of tea, and two Tylenol; when the door closes behind Buffy, he finally lets himself show how much pain he's in. "I'm sorry to spoil our plans," he begins. 

"You didn't. Whoever hit you on the head did," Jenny says, moving closer and kissing him gently.

***

**  
3\. 12:00 A.M.   
**

She finally manages to convince him to try to sleep; since she knows tomorrow he'll just be back out there doing this again, she wants him to get as much rest as possible tonight. "I'll wake you every two hours," she promises. 

"When are you going to sleep?" 

_I won't_ , she wants to say; _how could I, when I'm thinking about what could have happened tonight?_

Instead, she lets him find an alarm clock; it's as old-fashioned as she would have expected, although it does, at least, run on batteries. 

He falls asleep before she can tease him about it.

***

**  
4\. 1:00 A.M.   
**

Her quizzes are graded, the drink she'd poured herself is half-gone, and she's starting to write the test she's giving next Friday. 

Or rather, she has a pen in her hand and a legal pad propped up on her knee, but mostly, she's watching Rupert sleep, thinking about the sketchy details she got from the children: they'd been separated, and by the time Buffy heard Rupert's cry, the vampire was already on him. 

Jenny reaches out to run a finger along the side of his throat, reassuring herself that it's only a scratch, no matter what it could have been.

***

**  
5\. 2:00 A.M.   
**

When the alarm sounds, he convinces Jenny that he's steady enough on his feet now to go up to bed. 

She hesitates before following him; it's strange that this feels more intimate than what they'd planned for the night, but what _isn't_ strange anymore?

"Won't it be difficult to make an unnecessary fuss over me from down there?" Rupert asks, giving her a faint, wry smile, and she accepts the implied invitation. 

She never plans their dates to turn out the way they always do, but it'll be something to tell the grandchildren. 

Metaphorically speaking, that is, she adds quickly.

***

**  
6\. 3:00 A.M.   
**

She didn't pack practical pajamas. 

The satin creation she _has_ brought with her is not exactly suited to the occasion, not now, and so she opens the drawer Rupert took his own pajamas from, earlier, and slips on the top to a blue-and-white striped pair. She resists the urge to snoop; no matter how curious she is, she'll leave Rupert what remains of his secrets. 

The ones she knows, she's had forced upon her; she won't go looking for the rest. 

As she slips into bed beside him, she wonders if he'll be as respectful of the secrets she keeps.

***

**  
7\. 4:00 A.M.   
**

"You have a concussion," Jenny points out. "You need to be resting." 

Rupert glares at her, the same way he'd glared at Willow when she'd suggested that he should go to the emergency room, and Jenny rolls her eyes. Men. Rupert might have a _Masterpiece Theatre_ accent and wear tweed, but he's still a stubborn fool when it comes to admitting that he might need to let someone take care of him for a while. 

It's probably a good thing for their relationship that he falls asleep again before he can start to mutter about being treated like an invalid.

***

**  
8\. 5:00 A.M.   
**

This is the time Jenny's alarm usually goes off, to give her plenty of time for coffee and cat-feeding (Rupert laughed when she told him the cat was named Cliché, because after all, she's owned by a single woman who studies the occult; Jenny doesn't hear him laugh often, but she falls in love with him more every time he does) and checking her e-mail before work. 

She wakes automatically and, tired as she is, can't fall asleep again. She lies there, watching Rupert sleep, listening to him breathe, and falling in love with him more every time he does.

***

**  
9\. 6:00 A.M.   
**

They've argued for fifteen minutes about whether or not he's getting up. 

"What are you going to do? It's six A.M. on a Saturday; the newspaper won't even be here, and reading will probably give you a headache."

"I already have a headache," he points out. 

"A worse headache. Take your painkillers and go to sleep." The mark on his neck really is only a scratch, the barest scrape of a fang on his skin, but it holds her attention. 

He must notice, because his voice softens. "I'm perfectly all right."

"I know," she says, but she can't look away.

***

**  
. 7:00 A.M.   
**

She tries to take her own advice, but keeps drifting in and out of dreams where the door opened last night and Xander carried Rupert's corpse inside. Dreams where the vampire made him drink, and he stumbled inside--he wouldn't need permission if the occupant was already dead--spinning her a tale of capture and escape; the last thing she feels is his mouth on her neck. 

She can't explain why she's upset; doesn't want him to think she doesn't understand why he has to do this. 

But she can't stop thinking about it, so she gives up on sleeping.

***

**  
11\. 8:00 A.M.   
**

She's in the shower when the alarm clock rings, and she turns off the water, listening.

The ringing stops, and shortly afterward, she hears movement, so she quickly finishes her shower, assuming that Rupert woke just as easily this time as he has all night. 

He's coming down the stairs when she comes out, and she frowns. "You should have waited for me," she says. "If you had a dizzy spell--"

"Could we at least say 'good morning' before you start fussing again?" he asks. 

She crosses the room and kisses him, and he seems to accept the apology.

***

**  
12\. 9:00 A.M.   
**

"Satisfied that I'm not about to slip into a coma?" Rupert grumbles, but his mood lifts perceptibly when he sees that she's made breakfast while he showered. 

"Yes. Do I at least get to eat before you push me out the door?" she teases.

"No one's pushing," he says. "I just thought that you might like to try again to spend the day together, this time _without_ all the hovering." 

He still needs rest; she thinks about saying no. 

But if she's here, she can keep an eye on him, and so she agrees, for her own peace of mind.

**Author's Note:**

> [me on tumblr](https://mireille719.tumblr.com)


End file.
